§ Mr. SoamesTo ask the Secretary of State for Defence (1) if he will make a statement on the steps he is taking to improve recruitment to the Queen's Royal Lancers; [31603]
(2) to what causes he attributes the deficit in the established strength of the Queen's Royal Lancers. [31604]
§ Mr. IngramI apologise for the fact that, due to a coding error which excluded personnel not recorded against the main Unit Identification Number, eg Rear Party personnel, the establishment and strength of the regiments of the Royal Armoured Corps, the information that I gave to the hon. Member in my answer of 24 January 2002,Official Report, column 993W, was incorrect.
Consequently the current deficit in the Queen's Royal Lancers (QRL), as at 1 December 2001, is 41; not 198 as previously stated.
In the coming financial year, like other regiments, the QRL will benefit from a package of resources provided by the Army Training and Recruitment Agency's Recruiting Group to assist Regimental Recruiting Teams. This will include the provision of a minibus and recruiting trailer, mobile telephones and computing equipment, as well as funding for travel and marketing expenses.